MicroWaveDec 6, 2024

Brian Thompson’s killing sparks outrage over state of US healthcare

https://lemmy.world/post/22822259

Brian Thompson’s killing sparks outrage over state of US healthcare - Lemmy.World

Summary The killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson has ignited outrage over the state of U.S. healthcare. While his murder shocked many, online reactions highlighted public frustration with private insurers, citing denied care, high costs, and systemic bureaucracy. UnitedHealthcare, a major industry player, has faced scrutiny for practices perceived as prioritizing profit over patients. The attack, which appears premeditated, underscores rising tensions around healthcare inequality. Experts see this as part of a broader trend toward violence over societal disputes, reflecting deep dissatisfaction with the American healthcare system.

Show threadZachariahDec 6, 2024

Option 1: Vote for Democrats / vote for a woman for president to get incremental improvements to healthcare and society.
Americans: yawn

Option 2: Start murdering the powerful capitalist oligarchs which will lead to zero improvements in healthcare and society but fuels fantasies of revenge and temporarily feels good.
Americans: “Yay!”

Show threadRivalarrivalDec 6, 2024

Option 1’s incremental improvement to healthcare are negated by capitalism’s incremental exploitation of those “improvements.” They can fuck shit up faster than politics can fix it.

Option 2 ends in universal healthcare.

Show threadZachariahDec 6, 2024

We didn’t even try Option 1 this time. It was too boring for most people to go out and vote. And then we had a vocal group decided to withhold votes based on their unbending principles.

I’m not holding my breath for Option 2 given we couldn’t even make Option 1 work. Since we’ve shown we can’t come together for each other, Option 2 is more likely to end in totalitarianism as the powerful react to the violence and/or in societal collapse as every person looks out only for himself.

Show threadRivalarrival

We didn’t even try Option 1 this time.

Option 1 was “maintain the status quo”. Continue to suck in exactly the same way that we have been sucking for the past 60+ years.

as every person looks out only for himself.

That’s called “Democracy”.

Dec 6, 2024 at 4:53amWeb
Show threadZachariahDec 6, 2024

If it’s not obvious to you that things sucked in distinctly different ways under Democrat and GOP rule, I doubt I’ll be able to convince you. Not to mention, the stark difference this next administration has from anything we’ve seen before.

If you don’t think we’ve ever made progress in this country, or that the Biden administration made only maintained the status quo, I guess that’s fine. You do you. But that’s not the case from what I’ve seen.

I am interested in how democracy is every person looking out for themselves. I can agree that any societal system has to account for self-preservation, but democracy itself is, as far as I understand, a tool to channel individual instincts toward improving things for everyone.

Show threadRivalarrivalDec 6, 2024

If it’s not obvious to you that things sucked in distinctly different ways under Democrat and GOP rule

Sure. There are distinct differences between the two.

There are also distinct differences in the different ways things sucked in the 1920s. There are distinct differences in the way things sucked in the 1980s. The distinctions you are talking about are trivial compared to the distinctions across the decades.

Neither Democrats nor Republicans are currently interested in the kind of reforms necessary to address the oligarchs. The difference in suckiness between the two is certainly distinct, but relatively insignificant. We need to tackle the bigger problems; the problems that Harris wasn’t capable or even interested in solving. We know we need to tackle those problems, which is why someone unable and/or unwilling to look at them gets a yawn.

Option 2 gives us an optimistic electorate. That “Yay!” is exactly what we need. The most pressing issue we need to address is Reagan’s tax policies. So much is resolved when we restore the measures we used to destroy the robber barons.

Show threadZachariahDec 6, 2024
I agree with most, but not all, of your understanding of our situation. Sounds like you want things to get better. I hope your efforts are successful.